KCRA's Brian Hickey took a flight with veteran stunt pilot Eddie Andreini at Mather Airport in 2012. Andreini was killed while performing Sunday at the Thunder Over Solano air show at Travis Air Force Base.

The plane crashed into the tarmac away from spectators at about 2:05 p.m.

Bryan Stokes, who was watching the air show during the crash, said the plane was approximately 40 to 50 feet above the runway when it started to stair-step down in an inverted position before crashing on the tarmac.

"And then after impact, his airplane slid for about 100 to 150 yards before it came to a stop upside down," Stokes said.

"There was shock, certainly there was gasps. But really folks kinda got silent as they waited to see how things would pan out," Stokes said.

Andreini was trying to perform a maneuver known as "cutting a ribbon," where he inverts the plane and flies close to the ground so that a knife attached to it can slice a ribbon just off the ground, investigators said.

"The emergency response notification was immediate -- and getting the emergency response vehicles moving onto the runway into the performers' clear area," Col. David Mott, 60th Operations Group commander at the base, said.

The air show was canceled after the crash.

The California Highway Patrol assisted in the evacuation of spectators. Several roads near the air force base were closed Sunday afternoon.

Organizers estimated that 100,000 people attended the air show Sunday.

Andreini, of Half Moon Bay, had flown planes since he was 16 years old and had performed stunts in shows for 25 years.

The National Transportation Safety Board will head up an investigation starting Monday. Lynn Lunsford of the FAA said the FAA was already on site and will be a member of the team.

Mott said wind will be one of the factors investigators consider.

"If we look at yesterday, the winds were much gustier. (There were) stronger gusts down the runway. What I can tell you is the winds were approximately 10 to 15 knots and that will also be part of the investigation," he said.

NEW VIDEO SHOWING THE FINAL MOMENTS BEFORE A STUNT PLANE CRASHES INTO THE GROUND. IT SHOWS AN AERIAL ACROBATIC GONE UPSIDE DOWN FOR A BIG FINAL MANEUVER. THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED. THE PLANE SLAMMED INTO THE GROUND, SKATING AND BURSTING INTO FLAMES. AND WE HAVE NEW PICTURES SHOWING YOU JUST HOW QUICKLY THE SCENE TRANSFORMED TO THIS. THE UPSIDE DOWN PLANE CRASHING INTO A FIERY SMOKY SCENE. WE HAVE NEW PICTURES SHOWING THE CRASH. THIS IS THE MOMENT THE PLANE CAME TO REST UPSIDE DOWN. YOU CAN SEE WHITE SMOKE EMANATING FROM THE PLANE BUT IT MIGHT ACTUALLY BE FROM THE AERIAL ACROBATIC SHOW ITSELF. MOMENTS LATER, THE WHITE SMOKE REPLACED BY LACK SMOKE COMING FROM THE BACK OF THE PLANE. MOMENTS LATER, THE SCENE BEGINS TO CHANGE QUICKLY AND HERMETICALLY -- AND DRAMATICALLY. YOU CAN SEE THE FLAMES TAKING THE COCKPIT. AT THIS POINT, NO EMERGENCY CREWS ON SCENE. THIS IS A TIMELINE AND A SEQUENCE AND FEDERAL INVESTIGATORS WILL BE LOOKING AT IT. INSIDE THE COCKPIT WAS THIS MAN, 77-YEAR-OLD EDDIE ANDREINI OF HALF MOON BAY. THIS IS VIDEO BACK IN 2012. THIS WAS A PILOT WELL KNOWN FOR BEING ABLE TO FLY SEVERAL VARIETIES OF VINTAGE AIRCRAFT IN DARING AND HEART STOPPING WAYS. WE KNOW THE AIRPLANE WAS A STEELMAN BIPLANE. WE KNOW THE CRASH HAPPENED DURING WHAT IS DESCRIBED AS AN EXCITING FINALE. HE GOES INSERTED, FLIES HIS PLANELOAD TO THE GROUND, AND CUTS A RIBBON THAT IS BEING HELD ACROSS NEW THE GROUND. WE HAVE THIS NEW VIDEO. THIS IS THE ACTUAL STUNT WITHOUT INCIDENT YESTERDAY AT THE VERY SAME AIRSHOW. YOU CAN SEE HE COMES CLOSE TO THE GROUND BUT THEN PULLS UP. THIS IS AGAIN THE SIGNATURE MOVE THAT IS PART OF THIS AIRSHOW FINALE THAT IS DESCRIBED ON THE PILOT'S WEBSITE AS A HEART STOPPING MOMENT. THE DRILL INVESTIGATORS ARE EXPECTED TO BE ON SITE TOMORROW MORNING. -- FEDERAL INVESTIGATORS ARE EXPECTED TO BE ON-SITE TOMORROW MORNING. TENS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WERE AT THE THUNDER OVER SOLANO AIRSHOW WHEN EDDIE ANDREINI'S PLANE CAME CRASHING TO THE GROUND, BURSTING INTO FLAMES. WE TURNED AROUND AND SAW BLACK SMOKE. THIS IS VIDEO WE DID WITH HIM A FEW YEARS AGO. OFFICIALS SAY HE HAD BEEN FLYING SINCE HE WAS A TEEN. WAS WIND A FACTOR? YESTERDAY, THE WINDS WERE MUCH GUSTIER. THEY WERE APPROXIMATELY 10 TO 15 KNOTS AND THAT WILL BE PART OF THE INVESTIGATION. TRAVIS OFFICIALS SAY CREWS ARRIVED ON SCENE AS SOON AS THEY COULD. OF THE EMERGENCY RESPONSE NOTIFICATION WAS IMMEDIATE. GETTING THE EMERGENCY RESPONSE VEHICLES ONTO THE ROADWAY . SPECTATORS COULD SEE THE SMOKE AS THEY HELD THEIR BREATH WORRIED ABOUT THE PILOT. IT REALLY GOT SILENT AS THEY WAITED TO SEE HOW THINGS WOULD PAN OUT. WHAT WAS GOING THROUGH YOUR MIND? I WAS HOPING THEY PILOT SURVIVED. MY GRANDSON SAID A PRAYER. TRAVIS OFFICIALS TELL US OF THE NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD WILL BE HERE TOMORROW MORNING. THEY WILL COMG THROUGH THE CITY